Journal box



A April 23, 1929.

D. S. BARROWS JOURNAL BOX Filed Oct. 30, 1924 Patented Apr. 23, 1929.

UNITED STATES 1,710,139 PATENT OFFICE.

DONALD S. BARROW'S, OF ROCHESTER, NEW-YOBK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO THE SYMINGTON COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF MARYLAND.

JOURNAL BOX.

Application filed October 30, 1924. Serial No. 746,798.

The invention relates to journal boxes and more particularly to a lid construction for closing the openingin the outer end of the journal box.

The principal object of the invention, generally considered, is the provision of an articulated lid construction which may be rcadi- 1y attached and detached by utilizing a simple lever.

Another object of the invention is to provide a lid construction comprising a simple lid closure which is provided at its upper end with means for loosely engaging the hinge pintle, said closure member being adapted to completely close the journal box opening, a spring member pivotally supported by the hinge pintle, and a lever operatively engaging said spring and arranged without said closure member and intenposed between said closure member and said journal box.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a simple lid construction which is so devised and arranged as to permit of an easy and rapid assembly or disasscmbly from the journal box, said lid construction including a torsion spring member pivot-ally carried by the hinge pintle'of said lid.

To these and other endsthe invention consists of the various elements and combinations of elements as hereinafter set forth.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in front elevation of a fragmentary portion otthe lid and associated journal box, a portion of the lever 1nechanism being shown in cross-section.

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical sectional view of the construction shown in lligure 1.

Figure 3 is a side elevational view of a fragmentary portion of the lever.

'llnroughout the specification and drawings like parts are designated by like reference characters.

The journal box lis provided with side walls 2, a bottom wall 3, and a top wall or root 4; from which projects the hinge lug 5 oi the usual A. R. A. construction, the said hinge lug being perforated, as at (3, for the reception of a hinge pintle or bolt 7 and being further provided with angularly disposed bearing :laees 8 and 9 which are adapted to cooperate with the portions of the lid construction to maintain the lid in closed and open. position.

The closure member or lid proper com- [prises a plate 10 which is provided. at its upper end with loops or cars 11-11 through which the hinge bolt or pintle 7 is adapted to extend. The cars 11 are of greater diameter than the bolt 7 to provide for a limited amount of play or clearance so that the lid 10 may accommodate itself to irregularities in the walls 12 of: the journal box opening. Preferably, the lateral side edges of the lid are provided with inturned flanges 13 to assist in preventing the entry of dirt to the interior of the ournal box. At an intermediate point, preferably adjacent the center of the ournal box opening, the lid 10 is provided with an outwardly projecting T-headed member 14, said member being conveniently provided with a collar 15 to'engage the outer :tace of the lid 10 and with a rivet head 16 by means of which the collar 15 is drawn into lntimate contact with the adjacent exterior surface of the lid and the opening 17 through which the member 1 1 projects is closed against the entry of dirt. Y Pivotally mounted on the pcintle or bolt 7 sa torsion spring 18, said spring comprismg a pair of bolt engaging arms 19 and a pair of coils 20, the outer ends oi? which are respectively connected to the arms 19 and the innor or adjacent ends of which are connected by a rod or bar 21, all of which is clearly shown in Figure 1. The bar 21 is arranged to normally lie above and at a distance from the circum'l'erence off the coil portions 20.

The numeral '22 designates generally a lever which is substantially T-shaped. The stem of the T, 23, is provided with a bifurcated end portion 2 1 and with marginal flanges 25-25, the marginal flanges being prciler ably extended around the lower end of the lever to points adjacent the bifurcation or slot 24, the said slot being adapted to embrace the shank of the T member 14, the head off which overlies the adjacent side edges of the lever 22 between the flanges 2525. At its upper end the lever 22 is provided with a pair of spring housings 26 each of which is adapted to partially enclose the adjacent coil portion 20 of the spring 18. Each spring housin g is provided with exterior walls 27 27 and interior or adj accnt walls 28, the walls 28 conveniently being formed as extensions of the flanges 25. Each wall 28 is provided with an angularly disposed marginal slot 29, the purpose and object of which will hereinafter be described,'and in the wall 80 of each slot there is provided a curved seat portion 31 for the reception of the bar 21 of the spring 18. The

exterior walls '32 of the housings 26 are provided with laterally projecting flanges and the upper end of the intermediate portion of the lever 22 is likewise provided with laterally projecting flange 3 1, the flanges 33 and 34 being integrally connected and being adapted to form a hood partially embracing the hinge lug 5 of the said journal box. If desired, the walls 26 may conveniently be formed with laterally extending curved lugs or shoulders 35 which overlie the ears 1111 of the cover or lid 10- V V The central portion or stem of the lever 22 is provided at a point intermediate its ends with an outwardly projecting lug 38 and is further provided intermediate the lug 36 and the upper end of the lever with a second lug or outwardly projecting boss 37. Adjacent the member 1 1 the said intermediate portion of the lever may be provided with a bearing member 38 to engage the lid, the hearing 38 being disposed at or adjacent thevintersection of the vertical and horizontal axes of the opening of the said ournal box.

Owing to the necessity of utilizing spring pressure for maintaining the lid in intimate contact with the walls 12 of the journal box opening when the lid is closed and also to provide means for maintaining the lid in raised or open position so that free access may be had to the interior of the journal box, heavy spring mechanism is necessarilyemployed. Such heavy spring mechanism, while essential to the satisfactory operation of the lid,

' .is disadvantageous in that, in order to assemble the lid and journal box, it is generally necessary to utilize a press to overcome the reaction of the spring and to enable theears of the lid to be arranged in alinement with the opening in the hinge lug. Various attempts have been made to avoid the necessity of using a press or jack since it is often necessary to apply a lid to a journal box when the same is in service, and one of the objects of this invention, as has already been stated, is to provide, in combination with the various elements set forth, means whereby the lid may be readily and easily applied to a ournal box without the use of a press, aok

or the like. As shown in Figure 2, the arm 21 of the spring 18 is normally disposed so as to lie within the upper extremity of the slot 29 in which position the spring 18 is not under tension, and since the spring is free it will be obvious that the lid and loop portions of the springrinay bereadily arranged in alinement with the opening 6 of the hinge lug and the pintle 7 inserted. It is only necessary to then insert a lever or pinch bar 39, shown in dot and dash lines in Figure 2, be-

tween the arm 21 and the face of the lever lever 39 in a counter-clockwise direction until the arm 21 of the spring 18 is moved ver and into contact with the bearing faces 31 of the walls 28, at which time the spring 18 will be energized, thus causing the lever 22 to react to maintain the lid and associated mechanism in intimate contact with the walls of the journal box opening should the lid be closed, or by the engagement of the bearing portion 4-0 of the lever with the bearing face 9 of the lug 5, maintain the lid in raised or open position. Should it be desired, for any reason, to remove the lid, it is only necessary to insert the lever under the arm 21 with the end of the lever engaging the upper face of the lug 37 and to pry upwardly on the lever forcing the arm 21 from the bearings 31 into the position shown in dot and dash lines in Figure2, at which time the tension on the spring "-eing relieved, the parts may be removed with case.

It will be observed that the lever 22 is interlockingly and slidably connected to the lid by means of the member 14. It will also be observed that when the parts are assembled not only is the lower end of the lever 22 connected to the lid 10, but the upper end of the lever is maintained in substantially normal position by reason of the position of the bar 21 of the spring in the upper ends of the slots 29. There is therefore no danger of the displacing of the lever 22 from its normal operative position upon the movement of the arm 21 to or from the seats 81.

' Having now described my invention, what I claim is:

1. The combination with a journal box having a hinge lug thereon, a plate member pivotally connected to said lug, a spring member carried by said lug and pivot-ally movable with respect thereto, a lever mechanism engaging said plate and lug at opposite ends thereof, said lever having slots therein to accommodate a portion of said spring when the same is'released from tension, said lever also having means engaging said spring when the same is energized, said spring being adapted pivotally mounted on said lid and engaging one of the'bearing faces of the lug, at the opposite end thereof, for holding said lid in open or closed position, a spring member having ends thereof engaging the pint-1e for connecting it to the box, an intermediate portion of said spring being adjustably received in a slotted portion of said lever, said slotted portion being formed with a plurality of notches therein, whereby the intermediate portion of said spring may be moved from relatively free to stressed positions by forcing said spring from one notch to another.

3. In combination with a journal box havmg a hinge lug thereon with. angularly disposed bearing faces, a lid therefor, a pintle 'inelnher pivotally connecting said lid to said box by means of said hinge lug, a lever device niovably connected at one end with respect to said lid, engaging one or the other faces of the hinge lug at its opposite end and spring means connected to said lever and hinge lug for forcing said lever against said hinge lug, 10

whereby the lid is held in open or closed position depending on the face of the lug With which it engages the said spring means adaptedto he moved from iliree to stressed position Where it engages diliercnt portions of said 15 lever.

In testimony whereof I a'liix my signature.

DONALD S. BARROlVS. 

